Some Ks. rural schools growing

Friday

Apr 23, 2010 at 9:16 AM

The Associated Press

LOGAN — After serving students in his hometown of Logan for nearly 35 years, Bob Jackson is well aware of the general population decline in western Kansas and the subsequent fall of school enrollments there.

Yet as he prepares to retire in June as the school superintendent is this town of 600 people, Jackson can leave with the satisfaction of a trend-breaking accomplishment in his resume.

Despite school finance problems and declining enrollments throughout the state, Logan added 14 new students to its enrollment total over just the past year.

For a school district the size of Logan, which has 183 students in grades K-12, that meant an 8 percent increase in enrollment in one year.

"People ask me how that happened, and I just don't know any one thing" to attribute the increase to, Jackson said. "It was several things, a family moving in, a few more in a couple of classes.

"I'm hoping that trend will continue, but I'm smart enough to know it probably won't," Jackson added. "At the worst, though, we're going to be able to use those numbers for next year's budget."

Keeping that optimism and finding ways to get by, one year at a time, have become a trend in Logan and other small area schools.

Bob Young, superintendent of Sharon Springs USD 241 in Wallace County near the Colorado state border, finds a silver lining in the current cloud of economic uncertainty.

Sharon Springs' population of about 750 is half of the entire county, and thus has increased school enrollment lately.

"Some families are moving back, and I attribute that to people losing jobs in the cities," Young said. "So we've been pretty lucky so far with enrollment. We're not in near as bad of shape as some others."

Located in western Phillips County in north-central Kansas, Logan also is fortunate because it is home of the Dane G. Hansen Foundation.

The foundation, which each year provides hundreds of thousands of dollars of scholarships to area high school seniors, funded a grant to the Logan school district several years ago to start a Spanish program.

Logan hires Spanish Teachers through the "Visiting Teachers from Spain" program through the Kansas State Department of Education. The program offers Spanish classes for students in preschool through high school.

"That's one of the things we're pretty proud of," Jackson said. "We're one of the few districts in the state that do that."

The slashing of programs, and therefore teachers, in some districts has made for a larger pool of applicants in others.

"Because of so many cuts, there's a surplus of teachers, especially in the elementary schools," said George Griffith, superintendent of USD 212 in Almena in Norton County.

"It usually can be very difficult to find teachers, especially in science and math, if they have to teach every class at all the levels," he added. "But I had two openings (for next year), and I was able to fill those with quality teachers — and they came from a large, talented group."

Griffith has made a habit of "making changes and adjustments" since moving to Kansas from Texas three years ago.

The district has reduced certain programs instead of cutting them altogether. For instance, "we've cut vocal to three-quarters, which is better than cutting it."

The district also has been aggressive in applying for grants for several programs.

"We have a decent contingency fund," Griffith said, "so we're planning on being here for awhile."

Recruiting teachers to Logan hasn't been much of a problem for several years, Jackson said.

"Cost of living is cheaper, and you can't beat the closeknitness of the community. People look out for one another," said Jackson, adding the quality of education also is a draw.

Logan, in its third year of an all-day kindergarten program, also has a half-day preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds.

"The all-day kindergarten was a selling point, and with the preschool, we see it has progressed our kids, accelerated things for them," Jackson said.

Then there are dual-credit classes through Colby Community College where students can earn high school and college credit at the same time.

"Our students can leave here with as many as 30 (college) hours through our dual credit classes," Jackson said.

For the past three years, Logan has been named one of America's Best High Schools by U.S. News and World Report.

While this year's freshman and sophomore classes are small (10 and 11, respectively), Jackson said the high school expects to get a boost in enrollment next year with a class of 18 eighth-graders. Also, he added, most of the classes in kindergarten through sixth grades are "in the 16 to 17 (student) range."

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Advertising

Stay Connected

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
The Topeka Capital-Journal ~ 616 SE Jefferson, Topeka, KS 66607 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service